Shaft mucker



June 16, 1953 E. B. ROYLE 2,642,199

SHAFT MUCKEB Filed Jan. 31, 1949 4'Sheets-Sheet 1 June 16, 1953 E. B. ROYLE 2,642,199

SHAFT MUCKER Filed Jan. 51, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 w 3% a cu/b E. B. ROYLE SHAFT MUCKER June '16, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 31, 1949 5mm Cab 00277 Rqy/e the buck t: drive; and sup or ng car iage;

Patented June 16, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT: orr es SHAFT MUCKER 'Edwin B. Royle, Salt Lake. City, Utah,-assi.gnor

to The Eimco Corporation, 'Salt Lake-City, Utah, a corporation of Utah Application J anuary'31, 1943, Serial YNF73384J1F'1 :1 This invention relates. to an excavating machine;

It is an object of the invention to provide an excavating machine that'can be used in the confined spaces of mine shafts, wells, caissons and. cofferdams, as well as upon steep embankments, or in pits and craters.

' Another object is to provide an excavating machine that can be progressively lowered to excavate ashaft or hole, with adjustable means forpositioning and anchoring the excavator in eachsuccessive operating location. I

A further object of the invention is to provide an. excavating machine in one compact unit which can be raised or lowered by its own power.

Another object is to provide such a machine that. will permit lateral and circular movement of. the machine within an excavation.

A further object of the invention is to provide an excavating machine that can be operated with the shaft timbering at any distance above the muck pile.

Another object of the invention is to provide an excavating machine that is power-operated for rapid and economical mucking of shafts and wells.

These and. other objects and advantages are provided by the excavating machine of the invention which in its preferred embodiment includes a rectangular supporting frame, spaced trackways forming the. sides of the frame, a carriage mounted for 1 ;'raversal along the trackways, and a bucket mounted on the carriage to swing between the. trackways.

The invention will be more particularly de scribedwith reference. to the illustrative embodie ments of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings in which: 7 V

Fig. 1 is aside view of the excavating machine in operating, position in a shaft;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the excavating mae chine;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the excavating machine;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged end machine showing the hoist mechanism;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse section on line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the supporting mechanism of the excavating machine;

Fig. 7 is. an enlarged Side view of the bucket supporting and drive mechanism; and

Fig.. 8 s n enlarged fragmen arytop iew of elevation. of the 5 Claims. (01. 214-431.

. Inithe" drawings I0 is the main supporting frame, having a hoist mechanism H. at one end and asecuring. and positioning jack bar assembly Y 12. at the other. A carriage l3 mounted for traversal along the frame carries the shovel bucket l4.

The main: supporting frame I'll is rectangular in shape having end plates ['5 and [6. The sides of the :frame comprise upperand lower rails I1 and I 8; these rails are-spaced apart to form a trackway therebetweem outwardly bowed ribs I9 are provided at regular intervals along the rails as strengtheningrmembers. v

At the forward end of the main frame 10, carriage traversing motor 20 is mounted. In the preferred form of the invention motor 20'i's reversible, fluid pressure operated, and controlled by a handle positionednear the operators seat 21'. Motor 20 drives the carriage traversing chains 28 and 29 throughgea-r 22, chain 23, gear 24, shaft 25 and carriage traversing chain drive gears 26 and 21. The chains 28 and 29 are adjustably mounted at the rearward end of the mainframe by adjustment brackets 30 and 3| which carry idler pulleys 32 and 3-3, Carriage I3 is connected to chains 28 and 29 by carriage traversing chain anchors 34' and 35 or by adjustable bolts.

Referring to Figs. 5, 7, and 8 of the drawings carriage I-B-comprisesside frames 36 and a back bucketon bucket pivoting-axle 44.

Axle 44 extends; through the drive assemblyj4 and is journalled in bearing. 45- and 46 located in thedrive assembly housing 41 and in bearings and 418 located between the carriage wheelv recesses 38. and 39 of carriage, side frames 36.

The shovel bucket I4 is attached to the bucket axle44 by extension arms Stand 5| thereby allowing the bucket to swing in an arc above and below tracks H- and I3. during its digging and dumpingoperational cycle.

Analternativemethod of attaching the shovel bucket. l4. tov itssupporting carriageis'to suspend th bu ket. pivoting axle: and its extension rms and: fr m the; carriage side frames 36 by m ans 9f. r sid extension members. secured: to

the wheels engage the the carriage side frames at their upper ends and having the bucket pivoting axle bearings at their lower ends. By the use of these extension members the shovel bucket l4 could be rotated in a complete circle during the digging and dumping operational cycle without swinging between the carriage side rails I1 and I8. V

A pair of coil springs 52, which limit the upward swing of the shovel bucket and provide a shock absorbing stop for the bucket when it is in the dumping position, are mounted on flanges 53 of the carriage back plate 31 as shown in Fig. 7 of the drawings.

In the preferred form of the invention the ex-" cavating machine bucket drive motor 42' is operated by pressure fluid supplied by fluid pressure supply hose 54 and pipe extension 55. A bracket j 56 is mounted on one side of the carriage l3 and holds the pressure fluid supply hose in such a position that a half-loop isrformed in the hose, thereby causing the hose to double-back-upon itself as the carriage is moved'forward' and to lay upon the hose carriers 51, spaced along the frame ID, as the carriage is moved toward the dumping position. Bracket 55 is adjustable and pipe 55 is provided with swivel connections permitting thehose, bracket and pipe extension to be collapsed or laid fiat against the frame in order to obtain the minimum-over-all height or thickness of the excavating machine when it is being removed from a shaft.

At the forward end of the supporting frame Ill is located the hoist mechanism l l for raising and lowering the mucking machine within a shaft and for supporting the forward end during the mucking operation. The hoist mechanism i 1 comprises a hoist motor 58; which may be fluid pressure operated, a cable drum 59 and a supporting cable 69 having at its free end an anchoring device 6!. The supporting cable feeds through a guide formedby pulley wheels 64 pivotally mounted at the upper end of a frame stabilizing device consisting of braces 62 which are pivotally attached at their lower ends to main frame extensions 63.

The excavating machine is secured to the walls of an excavation, at its rearward end, by jack bar assembly I2, which also provides a means of laterally moving the machine within the excavation. The jack bar assembly comprises overlapping cylinders 54, 65 and B6, and fluid pressure operated pistons and piston rods 67, 68 and 69 slidably mounted'therein.

A bar it rigidly connects pistons El and 68 while their respective cylinders 64 and 65 are jointly supplied with fluid pressure whereby pistons El and 68 and their connecting bar in are extended and retracted together. A wall engaging end member H is attached, to bar 10, midway between the pistons 61 and 6E. Piston and piston rod 690i cylinder 66 is extendible in the opposite direction from pistons El and 58, and is provided with a wall engaging end member 12. In order that the thrust upon the shaft walls created by the wall engaging members H and 72 will be the same the cross sectional area of piston 69 is preferably substantially equal to the combined effective areas of pistons 6! and 68.

A four-way valve 13 controls the extension and retraction of the pistons. Line pressure is fed to the valve through port 15 and exhausts through port 16. Pipe lines 11, leading from valve port 1?, connect the rearward ends of cylinders 61, 68 and 69 at 19, 80 and 81, respectively, to the pressure, or exhaust lines, while pipe lines 82 4 leading from valve port 82 connect the for ward ends of cylinders 61, 6B and 63 at 83, 84 and 85, respectively, to the pressure or exhaust lines. I

To extend the pistons, valve port ll is connected to the pressure inlet port 75, and fluid pressure will flow through pipe lines Ti to the rear of pistons El, 63 and 59. Fluid pressure trapped ahead of the pistons will leave through cylinder ports 83, 8d and 35, and return to the valve through pipe line 82. To retract the pistons the valve is turned so that valve ports 75 and 82' are interconnected whereupon pipe lines 32 become the pressure lines and pipe lines I! the exhaust lines. Normally after the pistons have been extended valve l3 is left open to maintain pressure in the cylinders at the rear of the pistons.

-A second control valve 14, is provided to cause lateral motion of the excavating machine. Valve '14 is a three-way valve having small, finelygraduated port openings to permit the bleeding 'of fluid pressure from the cylinder on one side sufficientlyito cause a pressure drop at the rear of the piston. The drop in pressure on one side will cause the main frame to move toward that side, while sufficient pressure is maintained in that cylinder to provide adequate wall pressure to firmly support the excavating machine.

' Bleed lines 86 connect the rearward ends ofcylinders- 61 and 68 at 81 and 88, to the exhaust line 89 through valve ports 90 and 9|, while bleed line 92 connects the rearward end of cylinder 69 at 93 to the exhaust line 89 through valve ports 94 and 9|.

In the preferred form of the invention, fourway valve 13, for extension and retroaction of the jack-bar pistons is located near the cylinders so the valve may be readily accessible for control by an operator near the jack-bars during the initial positioning of the excavating machine or during its removal.

The three-way bleeder valve 14 is located at the forward end of the machine where the excavating machine operator can readily manipulate the valve with his feet when the machine is to be moved laterally across an excavation.

Operation The excavating machine is normally suspended, at a safe distance above the floor of the excavation, in a vertical position, from the shaft timbering by means of the hoist cable 60 and cable anchor 61 during the drilling and blasting operations. When the machine is needed for mucking the blasted material it is lowered by its own power by means of the hoist mechanism I I; then the hoist cable 95 of the muck bucket 96 is'fastened at the rearward end of the main frame I0 to eyes 91; hoist cable 95 lifts the rearward end upward as hoist mechanism H lowers the for ward end; and the frame is thus maneuvered to a suitable position above the muck pile as shown in Fig. 1. At this point jack bar assembly control valve 13 is opened and pistons 61, 68 and 69 are extended until the wall engaging end members H and I2 engage the shaft walls. In soft ground where it is necessary to carry the shaft timber close to the bottom of the shaft in order to support the walls, brackets may be fastened to the bottom timber set extending downward low enough to provide a support for the wall engaging pistons.

The mucking operation is started by swinging the shovel bucket 14 downward and backward acsaioo until the bucket teeth are almost at right angles to the pllenof mucbas shownin Fig.4 1. Hoist cable 180 is then 'slackene'd to permit the'full weight of the excavating machine to' bear-upon the shovel bucket Hi, while the bucket :drive'control handle is moved tocausethe shovel bucket to rotate forwardly thereby scoopingoutv a hole in the muck pile. As the shovel bucket is swung towards a horizontal position carriage I3 is moved to the dumping position and the bucket is swung upward. between the side rails and disch-argeclinto muck bucket 96, which when full is elevated to the surface of the shaft and dumped. This" cycle is repeated until a good hole is started in the muck pile at which time the shovel bucket is refilled by using a crowding force as'well as the swinging-motion.

The "crowding action of the shovel isgaccomplished by moving the bucket supporting: carriage '13 forward thereby forcing thetee'th of; the

"asuitable arrangement of gears and clutches.

Whemdesirable the-trackways may be located to: one side or above thearc of the bucket swing, and the-trackways may be positioned horizontal- 1y or'at any angle to the horizontal including the vertical.

' From the foregoing description it will be seen that the invention providesa rapid and economical device for excavatingshafts and wells, and upon steep embankments, whereby the aims, objectsta'nd advantages of the invention .are fully accomplished. Y I

I claim:-

- 1: An excavating machine comprising a main 'frame; t-spaced parallel trackways forming the sides of said frame, said trackways comprising upper andslower rails, ribs joining said. upper and lowerrails, a carriage mounted for traversal shovelbucke't into the muck pile as the bucket jis swung upwardly between the sides ofithemain frame.

After the blastedv muck hasibeen'removed from beneath the excavating. machine from the dumpend to the drive end, the frame I0 is moved laterally by sliding the frame on the jack bar assembly [2 as hereinbefore described.

If a shaft is too long to be completely cleaned by the forward travel of the shovel bucket, it is first cleaned beneath the machine to the bottom of the blasted material, and then pistons 61, 68 and 69 are retracted and with the aid of the hoist mechanism II and muck bucket hoist cable 95 the excavating machine is moved to a new position.

Shafts that are too wide for the range of the wall-engaging pistons may be excavated by using an extension piece fitted over one of the pistons of the jack bar assembly. After half of the shaft is thus mucked, the extension piece is placed on the opposite jack bar which will then position the excavating machine over the unexcavated area. An alternative method is to suspend the main frame In from the shaft timbering, by means of the hoist mechanism H at the forward end and by a pair of cables at the rearward end. Longitudinal extension jacks, similar to the jack bar assembly I2, would stabilize the machine by engaging the front and rear shaft walls. With this method of support, after one section of the shaft is mucked the frame is retated to a new position which is particularly advantageous when working in circular shafts.

When the shaft is completely cleaned the shovel bucket I4 is positioned between the sides of the main frame and the shovel bucket motor supply hose bracket 56 is folded upon the frame to give a minimum thickness to the assembly while it is hoisted by its own hoist assembly lengthwise up the shaft to a place of safety unhoist drum, carriage and shovel bucket may bev electric motors or a single motor may be used to drive the shovel bucket, carriage and hoist by spaced side members; a shovel bucket secured on said-pivotal. mounting means between the rails to swing between the trackways, and drive means carried by the carriage for swinging the bucket between the trackways in an arc extending from a digging position below the carriage spaced side members to a dumping position above said side members.

2. An excavating machine comprising a main frame, extendible means attached to one end of said frame comprising fluid pressure operatedpistons for laterally positioning and securing the machine in an excavation, a, hoist drum and cable attached at the other end of the frame for raising and lowering the machine, spaced trackways forming the sides of said frame comprisin upper and lower rail members, ribs joining said upper and lower rails, a carriage mounted for traversal along said rail members,

said carriage comprising side members and a transverse member, wheels rotatably mounted at each end of said carriage side members, an axle journalled to the carriage, a motor and gear train mounted between the carriage side members for rotating said axle, a shovel bucket mounted on said axle to swing between said rail members, means attached to the main frame for traversing the carriage, comprising a motor mounted atone end of the main frame, chains driven by said motor running substantially the length of the trackway, and anchors connecting said chains to said carriage.

3. An excavating machine comprising a frame providing spaced trackways, a carriage mounted for traversal along said trackways, said carriage comprising spaced side members between said trackwaysand a transverse member, an axle journalled to the carriage side members between the spaced trackways, a motor and gear train mounted on said carriage transverse member in spaced relationship to said side members for rotating said axle, a pair of arms. secured to said axle between the carriage side members and said motor and gear train, a shovel bucket mounted on said arms to swing in an are between the carriage side members extending from a digging position below the carriage side members to a dumping position above the carriage side members, and means attached to the frame for traversing the carriage.

4. An excavating machine comprising frame members providing spaced trackways, a carriage mounted for traversal along said trackways, means to traverse said carriage along, said trackways, said carriage comprising spaced side members between said trackways and a transverse member, pivotal mounting means carried by said spaced side members, a bucket secured to the pivotal mounting means between the spaced side members to swing in an arc above and below the pivoting axis thereof, means mounted at one end of the frame member for raising and lowering the machine within an excavation, extendible anchoring means attached at: the other end of the frame members, said extendible means located transversely of the frame and providing pivots around which said one end of the sup porting frame may be raised or lowered.

5. An excavating machine comprising a rectangular supporting frame, spaced trackways forming the sides of said frame, a carriage mounted for traversal along said trackways, an axle pivotally mounted on said carriage between said trackways, arms carrying a bucket mounted on said axle to swing in an arc between the trackways extending from a digging position below the trackways to a dumping position above the trackways, and means attached-to said supporting frame for traversing said carriage, said means-including a motor mounted at oneend of said supporting frame, chains driven by said motor running substantially the len th of the trackways, and means connecting said chains to said carriage. Y

EDWIN B. RO-YLE.

References Citedin the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 863,368 Durfee Aug. 13, 1907 1,234,115 Armstrong July 24, 1917 1,906,001 Finlay et al Apr. 25, 1933 ,059,660 Sheets Nov. 3, 1936 2,147,093 Haske Feb. 14, 1939 2,255,398 Stewart Sept. 9,1941 2,440,501 I Erickson Apr. 27, 1948 2,474,803 fPutna'm June 28, 1949 32, 91,533, Riddell Dec. 20, 1949 2,593,693 Osgood Apr. 22,1952

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date Germany Nov. 10, 1930 

